• collapsible storage I've used for years laundry basket with sheets
    Food,  gift and learning

    Collapsible Bags and Baskets I’ve Used for Years

    Just because bags and baskets serve a useful function does not mean we always have space to store all of those bags and baskets. Especially the ones that help us manage the more tedious aspects of our life. That’s why I’ve become a fan of collapsible bags and baskets for chores such as laundry and grocery shopping. They are available in all their full-size glory when I need them, but I can easily fold them up and tuck them out-of-sight when I don’t need them. Here are the collapsible bags and baskets I’ve used for years. Years, folks. If I’ve used something for years and it still works great, you…

  • thrift store find flower print with scalloped edge
    thrifting

    Four Recent Thrift Store Finds

    I’ve become more interested in thrift store shopping for my home in recent years for three reasons. I really, really, really, really like a bargain. Certain items of yesteryear are made better than they are now. I don’t want my home to look like everyone else’s. Plus, it balances out my Amazon shopping habit. Oh, and did I mention I like a bargain? My conundrum with thrift store shopping is that I really don’t like shopping in general. It feels like a waste of time and I don’t usually have the patience for it. More often than not I go to a thrift store and see nothing that sparks a…

  • elephants trunk flea market
    thrifting

    Happy Thrifting: Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market

    Have you ever seen a faraway place on TV or in a magazine and thought that it would be a cool place to visit someday? That’s what I’ve always thought about Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market in Connecticut. It is often the backdrop for the HGTV show Flea Market Flip. It has also been mentioned in magazines the likes of Architectural Digest and by interior designers like Emily Henderson. As it turns out, I can now drive to Elephant’s Trunk Flea Market in about two hours. I’ve been stuck in traffic jams in Atlanta for longer than two hours, so driving this long to potentially score some unique treasures at a…

  • happy thrifting smalltown antiques
    thrifting

    Happy Thrifting: Smalltown Antiques

    I’ll happily admit I’m the type of shopper that judges an antique or thrift store by the stuff they have outside. If it looks like “good” stuff – whatever that means – I’m more likely to want to stop. Do you do that too? Smalltown Antiques in Flanders, New Jersey, had all sorts of good stuff outside its front door when I visited. I’m guessing thieves don’t steal old crocks? Not only was the outside packed, but Smalltown Antiques the kind of shop that is brimming with interesting finds inside too. It’s not big space-wise, but there’s a lot to take in. I loved the bookends on this table and…

  • thrifting

    Happy Thrifting: America Designs

    I have quite the virtual shopping treat for you today! We recently visited the town of Lambertville, New Jersey. Never heard of it? That’s okay. It is a small town (population approx 4,000) located along the Delaware River and right on the border of Pennsylvania. The Travel Channel recently named Lambertville the “Most Charming Small Town” in New Jersey on it’s list of “America’s 50 Most Charming Small Towns.” That’s quite the endorsement, isn’t it? With a recommendation from The Travel Channel and the town’s self-described label as the “Antiques Capital of New Jersey,” we HAD to check it out. The very first store in Lambertville that we ventured into…

  • decorating,  thrifting

    3 Thrift Store Finds and 1 Garbage Find

    A couple of weeks ago, I was on a thrifting roll. Six new-to-me items came into our home. SIX! I don’t usually have that much luck on a regular shopping trip, let alone while thrifting. That is why I will never make it as a fashion blogger. Here are the items that caused me to open my wallet and one that was garbage and I had to spray with bleach. First up is this brass mantel clock made by Bombay Company. The angels started singing when I saw this beauty, but I walked away from it. I did. I was so strong. I made a loop around the store and…

  • decorating,  thrifting

    Happy Thrifting: The Nest at Farmstead Farmers Market

    Ready to go thrifting with me? Virtually speaking, of course. Oh, good! The benefit of these one-sided conversations is that you always say the correct thing. I like that about you. The kids and I were recently driving through Palmyra, Pennsylvania, and decided to stop at an antiques co-op called The Nest at Farmstead Farmers Market. Actually, I decided to stop. My kids just whined, “Hey! Why are we stopping?” Where’s your sense of shopping adventure, kids? If you and I were actually going thrifting together, I think there’d be far less whining. I like that about you too. Enough about my glamorous life. Let’s step inside. My eagle eye spied that…